this morning, the high court lifted the injunction against westminster council preventing them from removing the last tent and the large 'peace strike' box from parliament square. police are now in parliament square to enforce the controversial new PASRA law and clear the square before the state opening of parliament next week. [additional pics]

yesterday, the 'boris' fences came down in parliament square. unfortunately it wasn't due to popular uprising. rather, it was part of the continued attack on protest, as a new swathe of laws and bye-laws criminalise the right to 24-hour protest. among the moves, the GLA placed a discreet notice in the evening standard last week announcing their intention to enforce new bye-laws which will dramatic…

today and tomorrow are respectively the deadlines for getting your comments in to the two consultations aiming to criminalise protest camps in london.

after a postponed hearing at the high court today, parliament square protestors won the right to sustain their injunction against westminster council, stopping the council from enforcing the new and untested PASRA law to clear tents and other structures from the square. the injunction will run until a further 2-day high court hearing during march, which will effectively decide the legality of the …

despite high court hearings today and the PASRA law effectively on hold, the metropolitan police and westminster council have begun a forceful operation this evening to remove tents and other structures from around the parliament square protest.

this follows on from my earlier piece with more background and history on the parliament square campaigns and the repression towards them, more detail on PASRA and tomorrow's high court case, the extension of the new 'global war on camping' (GWOC) as an assault on the 'occupy' movement, and some ideas of positive actions to take in the immediate future.

Starting at Occupy LSX at St Paul's Cathedral at 12 Noon.

City police explained to me that protesters were being arrested under Section 152 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act of 2005. This was incorrect as this section is for the 'Power to seize etc. vehicles driven without licence or insurance'.

Sections 132 to 138 of SOCPA restrict the right to demonstrate within a "designated area" of up to one kilometre from any point in Parliament Sq…

several hundred people took part in a march to parliament this afternoon. but a huge police operation ensured they couldn't exercise their democratic duty to protest outside the democratic heart of the nation. however, with non-violent persistence the protestors got close, ending up outside the house of lords, a stone's throw (not that any were) from the square.

last thursday, two people were found guilty at westminster magistrates court under section 128 of the serious organised crime and police act (socpa), which creates a criminal offence of trespass on certain 'designated' sites. the convictions were related to a banner drop from scaffolding at the front of parliament during the only debate there has ever been about the war in afghanistan. read rikki'…

brian haw, the parliament square peace campaigner, passed away in the early hours yesterday morning after a long struggle with lung cancer.

brian haw died peacefully in germany where he had been receiving treatment for lung cancer for the past six months. his parliament square peace campaign marked an extraordinary ten-year milestone just two weeks earlier.

Some recent articles about Brian Ha…

david cameron's threat to remove protestors from parliament square well before the royal wedding has been thwarted by the high court, who will not hear an obstruction case until may 9th..

the 'police and social responsibility bill' trundles through parliament, filled with clauses clearly designed to rid parliament square of brian haw's decade long peace vigil, with precise legal constructions that overturn years of hard-fought arguments in the high court. but it will not be in place in time for the royal wedding, and cameron has made a pledge that parliament square will be free of …

Police demand new powers to stop and search terror suspects

Police have asked the government for a new counter-terrorism power to stop and search people without having to suspect them of involvement in crime, the Guardian has learned.

Senior officers have told the government the new law is needed to better protect the public against attempted attacks on large numbers of people, and are hopeful t…

there have been various promises, and big media stories based on no more than a sentence or two from a dodgy peer - or recent big stories based on a quote by housing minister grant schapps for example, but finally there are some bones on the story that the con-dem government is serious about removing brian haw's 10-year protest from parliament square.

parliament.uk have published a proposed "poli…

yesterday in whitehall the camp was established opposite downing street in direct protest against the continuing afghan war.

last month more than a thousand bombs were dropped by allies over afghanistan, with huge loss of civilian life.

this massacre must end, and the 'white flag revolution' intends to remain opposite downing street until it does.

polls show around 70% of britons want troops out of iraq, but only a few thousand turned up today for the 'stop the war coalition' march and rally in trafalger square. however, as the rally ended, a small band of people walked down whitehall and set up their response to the war pledging to remain outside downing street until the troops come home. now they just need a morsel of support from all tho…

House of Lords debate. 8th Nov 2010.



Following a question by Baroness Trumpington of the Conservative party asking: "Is any agency responsible the removal of those occupying the pavement in Parliament Square?" , Home Office Minister Baroness Neville-Jones declares the UK government's intention to bring in new legislation to remove the Parliament Square protesters. One of the protesters: Brian Haw …

peaceful protestor simon moore was sentenced to seven days imprisonment in wandsworth jail today for a protest he held in whitehall against the afghan war last may.

bbc jamcam is currently showing a protest in parliament square against guantanamo bay trials

after this afternoon's 'democracy rally' (indy article), a group of about forty people decided to reoccupy parliament square. fences were dismantled and the security guards' tent was occupied and officially squatted. there were two arrests for alleged criminal damage, but the space was held for nearly six hours before guards man-handled protestors out after the police had left.



see past reports on …

protestors outside downing street mark the ninth anniversary of the invasion of afghanistan by reading out a list of names of both civilian and military casualties. an action that five years ago was an arrestable offence under the then new terrorist aimed SOCPA law. chiefs of staff were visiting the MOD and the cabinet office to fight for their budgets so the protest was timely.

Activists scaled parliament yesterday to protest at the continued atrocities in Afghanistan. One of them, Seamus, has been given bail conditions that imply he may be shot if he trespasses again.

Seamus is also in court at Horseferry Road on Monday morning at 10am on a charge of assaulting war criminal Jack Straw. Support and solidarity warmly welcomed at the Court then.

the two protestors who banner-dropped parliament during the afghanistan debate, were taken into custody last night. they were released early this morning with highly restrictive bail conditions.

today, with little media attention, and little protest apart from a courageous banner drop in parliament grounds, MPs voted to continue the occupation of afghanistan, as is.

business as usual.

the two protestors who yesterday eluded security to climb the scaffolding at the front of parliament have now been told they can remain until the afghanistan debate is over

two protestors climbed up on the scaffolding at the front of parliament (inside the security area) this afternoon.

they are protesting about the afghanistan war prior to a commons debate tomorrow. the STWC have called a protest at noon tomorrow before the debate.

the protestors have vowed to remain on the front of parliament overnight and until the debate (more...) updates: 1 | 2 | 3

on 25th may this year, when the queen visited parliament for the state opening, several democracy village citizens attempted to get past massive security and scale the building with banners. just one (known as "Sky Warrior") succeeded, and here is their rather inspiring and wonderful first-hand account of the day.

yesterday afternoon, citizens from the democracy village held a people's assembly, open to all, in victoria tower gardens next to parliament. this was followed by non-violent direct action to reclaim parliament square and disobey high court injunctions. after dozens of incursions, eventually one person was arrested.

democracy village activists cordially invite all to an open tournament of fence jumping in parliament square